Remnants of what it used to be... but with enormous career benefits
Pros
From a senior designer perspective across multiple orgs and 5 years - resume booster / career validation - great if your satisfied with the status quo and want a paycheck to retire with - you can say you work at apple if that sort of thing matters - if you get on the right team, there are awesome people there
Cons
- inconsistent creative direction or vision - groups within the same org can function 110% different ranging from the 9-5 group to the laid back results oriented group. - politics and stereotypes internally abound. Was “let go” after a lengthy investigation on a violation of a policy enacted 2 years after I was hired. No psa of new zero tolerance policies, or so they said. - certain orgs acquire agencies and they bring that dynamic with them. Most of the time they’re siloed which is good but if you’ve been part of an agency you probably don’t want that culture in your day to day anymore - if you want benefits (snacks, stocked fridge) , salary at the higher end of the scale and have an impact on what you’re contributing as a designer, this might not be the place for you. If you just had a baby, bought a house, need stability or building your resume now is a good time. But the culture shift will catchup with the rumors as well as the numbers in the coming years. No hard feelings, great time while I was there and wouldn’t change a thing. Easy finding an engaging mid 6 figure position elsewhere. Companies also match RSUs you might’ve lost out on. Mostly I miss the people and my team, but unfortunately losing faith in where the company is headed... I wouldn’t accept a position again considering the current climate within most major design orgs.